Yeovil Town take on Huddersfield Town at the Galpharm Stadium tomorrow in their first match of the 2007-08 season as they bid to go one stage better than the incredible finish to last season. Much water has gone under the bridge over the summer, with 12 players leaving Huish Park and eight more arriving as a rather unexpected turnover in playing staff took shape.
The expectation is that there will be four players making their debut tomorrow. Striker Lloyd Owusu should start up front, whilst the wide positions will be taken by Marvin Williams (right) and Paul Warne (left). The final debutant will be Liverpool teenager Lee Peltier who will start in central midfield.
That team selection has been made somewhat easier by injuries to Gary Dempsey and Marc Bircham who may have contested the central midfield slots. Club captain Terry Skiverton's absence, also through injury, will be catered for by the ever dependable Scott Guyett, and the remainder of the team ought to be familiar to those who followed the Glovers last season, with the other summer arrival Jerahl Hughes likely to be pushing for a bench slot.
Opponents Huddersfield are another team that are under transition and will be very difficult to predict in the coming season. New boss Andy Ritchie took charge for the final four games of the 2006-07 season after Peter Jackson departed in March, and he has had a big clear-out at the Galpharm, chosing to replace selectively. Two of those replacements need little introduction, with Frank Sinclair arriving from Burnley, whilst Danny Cadamarteri tries to get his career kick-started again after a brief spell with Leicester City. Malvin Kamara is the third major arrival, coming in from Port Vale.
Huddersfield have no reported injury worries with Jon Worthington and Andy Booth having returned to training this week, and so Ritchie will have plenty of options when chosing his line-up.
If past form is anything to go by, then the Glovers should go into tomorrow's game in confident spirits, having won their last three encounters, including two matches at the Galpharm. They did the double over the Terriers last season, including a terrific performance in front of the Sky cameras in January at Huish Park that saw a 3-1 win.
However, Huddersfield are still one of the biggest sides in this division, and whether it is this season or next, they will want to get themselves back up to Championship level, after a few too many seasons of midtableness for their fans liking. After last season's poor 15th place finish, they will surely hope for better.
Link: Ciderspace Guide To Huddersfield.
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10 August 2007 : 
